Ahh… this place brings back great memories of my years in Melbourne. If I need some quick reasonably good japanese bento, this would be the only place I frequent. I love to take away the DonDon box and enjoy it in front of the State Library lawn on a good day.

So, last trip back was no different. The minute I touched down in Melbourne, I was dying to visit Don Don. I was shocked when I saw the shop closed when I was walking towards it along Swanston Street.

My heart dropped (sob sob…) and I reluctantly turn around. For some reason, I turned and looked down along Little Lonsdale and I saw this new big RED sign !!!

I had hope… Have they moved? Is this the same DonDon?

I quickly drag hub along and we finally made our way into a much bigger shop (compared to their previous shop). After a quick scan at their menu, I was so excited to see that DonDon box is still available. Yay!!!

Now, let’s hope it still tastes the same. Look at the amount of food you get in the DonDon box. Hub got their teriyaki chicken curry rice. Which I think is ok. ME think the DonDon box is awesome. Love their sukiyaki beef. nom nom nom..

Queen Victoria Market (Vic Mart), is another of my favourite place in the world. I always feel so happy whenever I’m in Vic Mart. I could easily spend 3 – 4 hours happily browsing and drooling. hahaha…

All the fresh produce and the varieties they have there is truly mind boggling. From Fruit and Vegetables, Meat & Seafood, Organics, wine, cheese and fresh bread to clothings, kitchenwares, toys, shoes and many more. All are properly segregated in different market halls.

The best part is it’s really clean !!! unlike the wet market in Malaysia. ;p Amazingly, this market has been around since 1878 (135 years) and is still attracting tons of people everyday… (Except Monday and Wednesday – it’s closed).

Look at those freshly shuck fat oysters…Couldn’t resist coffin bay oysters after having some really fantastic ones from the Atlantic (Crown Hotel) the day before… Hub and I was still craving for them. So, we got 2 dozens back home to eat !!! LOL.

It was AWESOME !!! So fresh and big. But, we both agree that the ones we had at the Atlantic seems better. Smaller in size but the taste was stronger. But then, the one dozen from Vic Mart only cost us AUD 14. Whereas, the Atlantic was selling it at AUD 4 / pcs. ;p

My current electric kettle went psycho on me a few months back. The kettle doesn’t stop boiling and I almost had a heart attack when I saw water spitting out from the sprout non-stop. After that, I was very caution when I need to boil water. I’ll stand next to the kettle and wait for it to boil. It doesn’t cut off by itself so I’ll need to do it manually. It was quite irritating / dangerous.

And so, begins my hunt for an electric kettle. The selection I’ve seen in Malaysia was not impressive and I was quite shocked by the price too. Some better quality plastic models are asking for RM 100++ and the stainless steel models can get as high as RM 250++. Nothing I’ve seen so far capture my heart… So, I revert back to watching my kettle like a hound when I put it to boil. (It’s the Philip plastic kettle which we have been using for more than 5 years)

During my recent trip to Melbourne (Australia), I decided to browse the options of electric kettle there…(it was not intentional as I was there with my bro to hunt for a TV). I couldn’t resist it from the first moment I saw it sitting on the display shelf in Harvey Norman. It was almost love in first sight. But, I hesitated because of the hefty price tag at AUD 98 (sigh… I can’t justify to myself forking out RM 300+ for a kettle).

When my brother saw me salivating over the kettle, he told me that he saw a rather similar kettle in Big W (different model same brand) for a lower price. Really?!! Hooray!!! We quickly scramble off to Big W to hunt for the kettle. I was so excited when I see it priced at AUD 68 (about RM200+). Yes – my bro got his TV too. LOL.

Let me introduce my newest toy in the kitchen – the Breville’s Glass kettle. Yes – the body of the kettle is made from glass. How COOL is that?

Tada… look how beautiful it is sitting on my countertop. I was quite worry transporting it back (check it in with my luggage) initially. Thankfully, upon arrival the kettle is still in one piece and it’s working fine… This time round, I was actually lulled to stay back and watch the water boil. It was so fascinating. LOL

Note that it is not just any normal glass. It’s Schott DURAN glass !!!

I am a big fan of Schott glass product (love their range of Schott Zwiesel Tritan Crystal Glass!!! – I’ll reserve that for another blog post one day). Schott has more than 125 years experience specialising in glass. DURAN is the division for the lab devices. So, I was pretty confident the glass should be quite durable (unless you drop it) and able to withstand boiling heat with no effect on the material property.